Shloka 176
Adhyāya 284: Tapas as a Corrective to Household Attachment
Parāśara’s Instruction
येषां न विद्यते संख्या प्रमाणं रूपमेव च । असंख्येयगुणा रुद्रा नमस्तेभ्यो<5स्तु नित्यश:
yeṣāṃ na vidyate saṅkhyā pramāṇaṃ rūpam eva ca | asaṅkhyeyaguṇā rudrā namas tebhyo 'stu nityaśaḥ ||
ビーシュマは宣言する。「数も量も形も定め得ず、徳もまた数え尽くせぬ—その無量のルドラたちに、我は常に敬礼する。」この偈は、測り知れぬ神性の前に身を低くすることとして信仰を描き、人の計算と支配を超えるものを認めるところに倫理の根があると諭す。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches reverent humility: the divine (here, the Rudras) transcends human counting, measuring, and even fixed conceptualization of form. Recognizing this limit of human grasp supports a dharmic attitude—modesty, devotion, and restraint in claims of certainty.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Bhishma offers a stuti (praise) directed to the Rudras, expressing perpetual homage to their immeasurable nature and innumerable qualities, as part of broader spiritual-ethical discourse.